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Help planning May/June Euro trip

Help planning May/June Euro trip

Old Apr 5, 2015, 2:36 pm
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Help planning May/June Euro trip

I've got about 80% of the itinerary figured out, but I've always found it was a wise idea to post these plans on FT as it helps fill out the last 20%. I'll try to make this as brief as possible and will highlight areas of concern.

The main idea: friend getting married in Loire Valley in late May, so I built a Euro vacation around it. Will be traveling with a garment bag for the suit and other clothes just layered around it and a backpack for gadgets/laptop - still need to figure out if everything will fit or if I should also grab a carry-on roller.

May 22: Fly into CDG in the morning non-stop from DTW. Hotwire has stuck me with a much worse hotel than I thought I'd get (Atel Corail). Ah well, at least it's close to Gare de Lyon. Main plan is just to walk around Paris all day until I collapse. I've been to Paris before, so this time around I am going to skip the touristy stuff and just hang out in places like Marais and just wander around.

May 23: Afternoon/evening train to Nice. Staying in Antares Hostel right across from the train station.

May 24: Formula 1 Grand Prix in Monaco. I assume I'll be able to leave my bags in the hostel (or at the train station if worse comes to worst). Come back, pick up a rental car from the railway station (Europcar, Alfa Giulietta GPS or similar - wonder what it actually will be) and head to Brescia (4-5 hour drive).

May 25: Stelvio Pass. Been wanting to do that drive for a long time. Finishing the day in Davos, staying at Hotel Grischa (free, courtesy of IHG because they canceled my original reservation at Intercontinental Davos).

May 26: Drive to Colmar ("German" France, came highly recommended in every travel blog/Huffpost article I've read on the subject) via Liechtenstein (just because I haven't been there). Staying at Comfort Hotel Colmar.

May 27: Drive to Paris, drop off the car. Staying (until the 29th) at Intercontinental Avenue Marceau (discussion on picking that hotel or the Radisson Blu here). This is going to be the touristy part - playing tour guide for the groom's family.

May 29: Pick up another car, drive (along with two of the bride's friends) to Blois. Wedding and all that fun stuff until Sunday morning (the 31st). Staying at Blois B&B.

May 31: Drop off the car (likely in Paris, although Blois is also a possibility), take train to Cologne. This part is still TBD, so is the entire trip to Cologne, so I'll need a contingency plan in the event I don't end up going there, which will, most likely, just be the next step, but a day earlier).

June 1: Hang out with Ford colleagues. Take evening train to Amsterdam.

June 1-7: Hang out in Amsterdam. Trying to book reward nights (2nd one free) at Radisson Blu Amsterdam, but need to figure out the situation with my Club Carlson visa (the second free night not showing up right now). Been to Amsterdam before as well, so I am going to dig deeper for things to do, like in Paris. The prostitution museum opened up, I hear. Also, now that my trip has extended by three days, I might go to Brussels and check out the Europa Park.

June 7: Fly home to DTW (afternoon direct flight).

Things I'm interested in (to inform activities): cars/racing (I know there's a museum in Mulhouse which I'm going to try to hit on the way to Paris from Colmar), zoos (Paris and Amsterdam planned), cats (cat cafe in Marais), soccer (sadly no way to go to both PSG's last match and Monaco in the same weekend unless I fly and I already bought train tickets), planes (going to spend a good chunk of time plane spotting around Schiphol).

That's the trip in a nutshell. Any and all advice is welcome, as always.

Last edited by highlanderfil; May 1, 2015 at 1:35 pm Reason: Trip extended: now coming back on the 7th instead of the 4th.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 1:58 am
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I can see several problems with the early part of your itinerary:

1) The route takes you through Italy. You may not be able to take your French rental car into Italy (last time we rented a car in the South of France Italy was a "no-no")

2) The Stelvio Pass may not be open. It's summer-only, and it officially opens on 1 June. Sometimes mountain passes are open before their official opening date, but it's far from guaranteed.

3) Nice to Davos is over six hours driving time without the Stelvio Pass (and that's Google Time which tends to be somewhat over-optimistic). Driving on mountain passes takes a LONG time. I don't think the trip can be done in a day even if the pass is open. You'd have to drop the pass, and that probably means your whole reason for going to Davos has gone.

I know you want to see a bit of Europe, but Nice to Paris via Davos and Colmar seems an awfully long detour, and all you'll be doing is driving and driving and driving.

Another thing is that it's the Pentecost week-end, which means that the Monday (25th) is a public holiday virtually everywhere in Europe, and with another public holiday (Ascension) only ten days earlier a lot of people will be travelling around that time, so expect roads to be very very busy.

I'd drop Davos (and possibly Colmar too) and take a more leisurely drive on a more direct route - allowing plenty of extra time for the holiday week-end traffic jams.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 2:24 am
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This sounds like something I'd do, except there's no way I'd stay at an F1! Davos is pretty cool, but it is an awfully long drive as mentioned. Colmar is worth the visit as is the car museum in Mulhouse. But if you are really into cars and other types of motorized transport, I would say the number one destination for you should be the Chateau de Savigny-Les-Beaune. It's the most amazing museum I've been into in the world for that sort of thing. Not just for cars though, also motorcycles, fighter jets, tractors, fire engines, etc. Also small scale models of just about every motorized vehicle made.

You could stop there after Mulhouse on your way to Paris. But maybe allow several hours if this is your thing.

As for taking a car rental from France to Italy, I've done it countless times with Avis and Hertz. I think in the past there was an issue that Amex would not insure your rental for Italy, but that's no longer the case. At least not for me. Maybe it's because anti-theft control is much better in modern cars.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 6:48 am
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Aaand this is why I post on FT. Thanks, guys, keep the suggestions coming!
Originally Posted by Aviatrix
I can see several problems with the early part of your itinerary:

1) The route takes you through Italy. You may not be able to take your French rental car into Italy (last time we rented a car in the South of France Italy was a "no-no")
Interesting. I've done this once - rented a BMW 1-er in Paris, drove through Turin to southern France without a problem. Then again, I never thought to ask - to me Western Europe was always Western Europe. Guess I should check at least with the insurance company.
2) The Stelvio Pass may not be open. It's summer-only, and it officially opens on 1 June. Sometimes mountain passes are open before their official opening date, but it's far from guaranteed.
C...rap. No wonder Google Maps won't route me. I had read in numerous places that it opens in late May, but if it is, indeed, closed, there goes half the trip (OK, I'm being overly dramatic, but Brescia and Davos definitely become unnecessary and I am going to be looking for things to do on the way back to Paris). Is there a definitive source of information for whether or not it's open on any given day?
3) Nice to Davos is over six hours driving time without the Stelvio Pass (and that's Google Time which tends to be somewhat over-optimistic). Driving on mountain passes takes a LONG time. I don't think the trip can be done in a day even if the pass is open. You'd have to drop the pass, and that probably means your whole reason for going to Davos has gone.
And that is why I'm staying in Brescia the night after the race. Still a long drive, though, but the pass becomes part of the day's experience (if open).
I know you want to see a bit of Europe, but Nice to Paris via Davos and Colmar seems an awfully long detour, and all you'll be doing is driving and driving and driving.
Driving I don't mind (in fact, I enjoy it, especially if the car is right), as long, of course, as the destination is worth it. And if Stelvio is closed, it may very well not be.
Another thing is that it's the Pentecost week-end, which means that the Monday (25th) is a public holiday virtually everywhere in Europe, and with another public holiday (Ascension) only ten days earlier a lot of people will be travelling around that time, so expect roads to be very very busy.
Good to know, will keep in mind.
I'd drop Davos (and possibly Colmar too) and take a more leisurely drive on a more direct route - allowing plenty of extra time for the holiday week-end traffic jams.
If Stelvio is, indeed, closed, that's exactly what I'm going to do, although I will then be looking for other ways to pass the time. Maybe see Basel on the way to Colmar...
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 6:51 am
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Originally Posted by stimpy
This sounds like something I'd do, except there's no way I'd stay at an F1!
Hm?
But if you are really into cars and other types of motorized transport, I would say the number one destination for you should be the Chateau de Savigny-Les-Beaune. It's the most amazing museum I've been into in the world for that sort of thing. Not just for cars though, also motorcycles, fighter jets, tractors, fire engines, etc. Also small scale models of just about every motorized vehicle made.
Sounds like the Sinsheim Technik Museum in Germany. I am definitely going to give it a look (especially if Stelvio does end up being closed), thank you!
You could stop there after Mulhouse on your way to Paris. But maybe allow several hours if this is your thing.
Yeah, I don't mind arriving in Paris late - the way you described it makes it sound rather worthwhile.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 9:14 am
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As far as Stelvio Pass is concerned, this is where I got the information about its open months. Then again, I do now realize that if, according to that site, it's closed from November until May, those two may be inclusive and I might be out of luck even in late May.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 10:24 am
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Via Luxembourg or Liechtenstein? The latter is pretty but rather a major diversion.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 11:02 am
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Originally Posted by exilencfc
Via Luxembourg or Liechtenstein? The latter is pretty but rather a major diversion.
Liechtenstein. Lux is completely out of the way.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 11:04 am
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Stelvio Pass

Is there a definitive source of information for whether or not it's open on any given day?
My guess is that this is something they won't know until much nearer the time - as it's so weather-dependent. 1 June is a date I found on a web site, but it was from a few years ago - so maybe that was the "target date" for that particular year. They may well be aiming to have it open for the Pentecost week-end (Pentecost is a movable feast), but my guess is that the final decision won't be taken until just before the day.

(I don't have any experience of the Stelvio Pass, but my family were regular users of the Timmelsjoch pass when I was a child.... and some years it was still closed as late as the beginning of July. And the Stelvio Pass is slightly higher than Timmelsjoch)
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 12:05 pm
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Originally Posted by Aviatrix
My guess is that this is something they won't know until much nearer the time - as it's so weather-dependent. 1 June is a date I found on a web site, but it was from a few years ago - so maybe that was the "target date" for that particular year. They may well be aiming to have it open for the Pentecost week-end (Pentecost is a movable feast), but my guess is that the final decision won't be taken until just before the day.

(I don't have any experience of the Stelvio Pass, but my family were regular users of the Timmelsjoch pass when I was a child.... and some years it was still closed as late as the beginning of July. And the Stelvio Pass is slightly higher than Timmelsjoch)
Got it, thanks. Well...game-time decision, then.
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Old Apr 7, 2015, 12:25 am
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Originally Posted by highlanderfil
Hm?Sounds like the Sinsheim Technik Museum in Germany. I am definitely going to give it a look (especially if Stelvio does end up being closed), thank you!Yeah, I don't mind arriving in Paris late - the way you described it makes it sound rather worthwhile.
Thanks for the tip as I've never heard of the Sinsheim. I'll try to check it out someday. For cars alone, my favorite is the Merle Norman in Sylmar California. One of the best collections in the world AND all the cars are regularly driven. That makes it extra special. Also it has the finest collection of orchestrions as a bonus.

But the Chateau here in Burgundy has what must be the largest collection of fighter jets. Certainly the largest in private hands, but I think it must be the most diverse in the world with fighters from many different countries. And it has the largest collection of Abarth cars including one that one at Le Mans. And if you like wine, it has the added advantage of being in the center of the finest wine region in the world. The day I went the owner was there and he loves talking about his collection. ^
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Old Apr 7, 2015, 11:00 am
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Originally Posted by stimpy
Thanks for the tip as I've never heard of the Sinsheim. I'll try to check it out someday. For cars alone, my favorite is the Merle Norman in Sylmar California. One of the best collections in the world AND all the cars are regularly driven. That makes it extra special. Also it has the finest collection of orchestrions as a bonus.
Sinsheim is a lot bigger and more varied than I anticipated. There are a bunch of planes you can check out from the inside (two supersonic passenger jets are particularly notable), a massive F1 collection which I loved and just a lot of other cool exhibits. Definitely worth the drive.

Sylmar, eh? That's about a half-hour drive from where my parents live. Might have to look into that next time I'm visiting.
But the Chateau here in Burgundy has what must be the largest collection of fighter jets. Certainly the largest in private hands, but I think it must be the most diverse in the world with fighters from many different countries. And it has the largest collection of Abarth cars including one that one at Le Mans. And if you like wine, it has the added advantage of being in the center of the finest wine region in the world. The day I went the owner was there and he loves talking about his collection. ^
I'm not huge on fighter jets, but I am still going to try to check this place out.
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Old Apr 7, 2015, 11:49 am
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Originally Posted by highlanderfil
Sylmar, eh? That's about a half-hour drive from where my parents live. Might have to look into that next time I'm visiting.
Here's the site. I looked it up to be sure it's still active since its been many years since I was there. http://www.nethercuttcollection.org/
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Old Apr 7, 2015, 4:00 pm
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So quick update on plans: spurred on by the upcoming devaluation of Club Carlson points, I canceled the IHG reward nights and am staying at the Radisson Blu Champs Elysees and the art'otel Amsterdam (June 1-3). 140K points for four nights, could have done worse. Still need to find a good plane spotting hotel for my last night.
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Old Apr 8, 2015, 12:59 am
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Originally Posted by highlanderfil
Still need to find a good plane spotting hotel for my last night.
The best at AMS is the Sheraton which is essentially inside the airport. The majority of the rooms there have great views over the airfield. Or there's the nearby Hilton, but a lot of the rooms there will not have good views. I think both these hotels should have cash & points if you are looking to lower costs.
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